Bottle stopper



May 14, 1935.V E, GREENE 2,001,609

` BOTTLE STOPPER Filed Feb. ll, 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet l May 14, 1935.v E. GREENE 2,001,609

BOTTLE STOPPER Filed Feb. ll, 19.32 2 Shees-SheerJ 2 Patented May 14, 1935 UNITED` STATESv PATENT OFFICE BOTTLE STOPPER 15 Claims.

'I'his invention relates to protective bottle stoppers of the non-refillable type, whose object is to discourage and render unprofltable and uncommercial the surreptitious refilling of bottles t which they are attached, with inferior substitutes, or dilution, or other adulteration of the original contents, and is intended to render such refilling so laborious and difllcult that it will be unprofltable and therefore uncommercial.

In Letters Patent 14,382 (reissue) I have shown a devicevbased on the same general principles as that shown and described herein. While in many respects this device was satisfactory for the purpose intended, it is now desirable to produce one for use on much smaller bottles than those on which the old form of device could be used.

This want of adaptability of the old device to.

smaller bottles is due partly to thenecessity of neck, so as certain minimum limitations in the thickness of walls required by manufacturers of porcelain to prevent distortion in the ovens during the manufacturing process, and toprovide the requisite strength in such walls. Any reduction in diam'- eter of the surrounding casing for the valve parts would. in view of the aforesaid minimum wall thickness, reduce the inside diameter of such casing when applied to smaller bottles, to such an extent as to render the space for the reception of the said valve parts insufficient for the practical operation thereof, the weighted member of said valve parts being then too small to be effective as a valve-controlling weight; and there would be insufficient Aclearance for the proper egress ofthe liquid contents of the bottle around such parts. Furthermore, vit is desirable to have a device adapted to extend down into the bottle to form a more compact structure in which the valve casing with the contained valve parts and whereby lthe complete attachment will not depart too much from the appearance of the\tcrmi nal closures now commonly used.

Another advantage of having the valve compartment, especially when madeof .thin sheet metal, positioned within the bottle neck, is the added protection provided for it by the surrounding glass walls; obviously, if such a device were mounted on the exterior of the bottle it might be drilled, and the functioning of the valve interfered with. To prevent drilling it has been common practice to make such outside devices of porcelain, an extremely hard material; but a porcelain casing to be located within the aforesaid smaller bottles would'` of necessity have to be of even less inside -diameter to be accommodated within will be more or less inconspicuous the standard bores in the necks of this class of bottles. For these reasons the valve casing shown and described herein is a stamping made of metal not only to minimize wall thickness, without sacrificing strength, and thereby provide a maximum inner area, but to reduce the cost of manufacture, as will be apparent.

As it is impracticable to manufacture bottles in which an annular shoulder is provided within the bore of the neck remote from the top for seating a gasket the question was as to just how to support and seal such a valve casing as aforesaid witliin a bottle neck, and in addition provide a preliminary assembled unitary structure capable of being quickly applied by the bottler. Such problems have been solved and the requirements ofthe market fully met by the device shownV and described herein4 which has been made preferably with sprinkler-top characteristics, although with different dimensional clearances, or when increased in size for larger bottles, it may be made soV that it will pour with a continuous flow. y

An object of the invention is to provide a less expensive device of this character, artistic in appearance, compact in form, and which when applied to a bottle will be partially concealed i within the neck thereof. Another object of the invention is the provision of a complete assembled unit, including' an element by which. the device is permanently fastened to the bottle, which unit may be safely transported without danger of accidental disassembly during such shipment, or through careless handling; so that the unit may -come to the us'er ready fr application to the filled bottle. the provision of means for easily and quickly attaching the aforesaid unit to the bottle in such a lmanner that its removal will be extremely difficult, and its replacement, without plain evidence of mutilation, practically impossible. Further- 40 more, I have in mind that such removal of the unit will necessitate the destruction of the element employed to secure the device to the bottle, and that any replacement thereof will accordingly require the use of another of such elements, not

ordinarily available, as well as the employment of a specially designed machine for effecting attachment to the bottle. Hence the invention contemplates protection against replacement as w'ell as refilling, in a simple structure, since the fastening element may also bear a trademark or other indication and become in effect a metal label, the counterfeiting of which would constitute a criminal offense.

Herctofoi'e ordinary sprinkler-top bottle caps u Another object of the invention is 35 I of the invention be defeated, and this invention contemplates the use of a combined'closure and fastener` corresponding to such a cap, and forming a component of the assembled unit, but which preferably consists of two parts, and in which two different kinds of metal are utilized.

The body portion of such combined closure and fastener member is formed of relatively soft material, such as tin with its adaptability to manufacture by extrusion methods in the configuration required, and the other portion being of relatively hard but ductile material, such as Monel metal, the two fitting compactly together and closely resembling a one-.piece structure, with the hard metal acting as a protecting armor for the softer metal with added rigidity, and to also secure the device to the bottle in the manner desired.

In some bottled preparations there is a decidedly unfavorable chemical reaction if such preparations come into contact with metals unsuited for such use, but the two metals referred to are highly resistant in this respect and meet in their temper and physical properties, not only the mechanical requirements above enumerated but alsol those requirements 4relating to such chemical reactions.

The device in its preferred form, is provided with a valve-train and a valve compartment together with means as disclosed herein for effectively preliminarily and temporarily securing the latter to the cap or cover element prior to the final attachment to the bottle, after which the fastening is maintained in a positive manner as will be more fully pointed out. in a detailed description to follow.

Further objects of the invention will appear throughout the following specification and all of which objects I attain by the device illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which- Figi 1 isj a longitudinal central sectional elevation, double size, of the upper part of a bottle equipped with a device embodying my invention, y

the parts being in the position assumed when the bottle is in' an upright position and otherwise when it is sealed, as shown in this figure and as hereinafter described;

Fig. 2 is an elevation, device shown in Fig. 1, illustrating its characteristics as an assembled unit for ready application to a bottle;

' Fig. 3 is a horizontal 3--3 of Fig. 1; Y

Fig. 4 isa bottom plan view of the cover cap of the device; g

Fig. 5 is a bottom plan view of the guard ele ment of the valve-train;

Fig. 6 is a view similar to Fig. 1 but lshowing a modified form of the invention;

section taken on the line Fig. '7 is a plan view of the valve casing and 1 associated parts of Fig. 6 with the cover cap omitted;

Fig. 8 is an elevation of the same as viewed from the direction of the arrow 8 in Fig. 7, and partly broken out to show concealed parts;

partly in section, of the Fig. 9 is a similar view to Fig. 1 but of a further modified form of the invention;

Fig. 10 is an elevation, partly in section, of the assembled unit of the modification 'shown in Fig. 9;

Fig. l1 is an elevation, partly in section, of a further modified form of the invention shown in Fig. 9.

Referring to the drawings, A represents the neck of a bottle having a top bead B with a shoulder C. In the non-refillable construction (see Figs. 1-10 inclusive) a' valvev compartment consisting ofa cylindrical shell I of any suitable material but in this instance` of Monel metal drawn to the required formation, is provided with an annular top flange Iland a series of vertical, radially disposed ribs 2 which are bevelled at their upper ends 2 and extend from a short distance below the flange 3 through the remaining length of the shell, terminating at the bottom thereof below the valve seat 4. The ribs 2 present, interiorly of the shell, surfaces which, in section cross-axially of the shell, are convexly curved; and the ribs extend short of the open end of the casing so that the upper portion is substantially truly cylindrical, in order that the cross-section here may be maximum; in order that the upper end of the casing may receive the spacing and friction lugs of cover I6 without the necessity of taking care to have the lugs out of alinement with channels 21; and in order to make possible the formation of suspension flange 28, which is preferably annular as shown., extending laterally from and around the upper end of the casing. The curvature of the rib surfaces insures the minimum Contact between them and the edge of 4valve I4, thereby minimizing they possibility of undesirable adventitious adhesion of the disk to the side walls of the shell; and of course friction between the ribs and all of the valve parts is reduced.

The bottom of the shell has its lower end inwardly and upwardly turned and formed and apertured to provide (a) a central aperture 5, (b) an annular gutter interiorly of the shell, whose inner wall is curved or bent to extend upwardly and towards the axisof the shell and (c) an annular flat ring-like area constituting an extension of the inner gutter wall in a plane perpendicular to the shell axis valve seat around the aperture 5. Cooperating with the valve seat 4 is a circular disk like buoyant valve I4, which has a diameter appreciably less than that of the circle defined by ribs 2. The valve is preferably made of cork but should be buoyant to float, or provision otherwise made to cause it to float, should the bottle be inverted and liquid be introduced inthe valve compartment in an attempt to refill the bottle.

AAbove the valve o r float is a loosely mounted Weight' I5, preferably of porcelain, but in some instances possibly `of metal or other material heavier than the liquid to be placed in the bottle. Above the weight is a guide and guard I6, also preferably of porcelain, both of which parts are similar. to those shown in my patent above referred to, functioning in general in thesame manner but being proportionally smaller.

Upon the flat top of the bottle neck A is an annular gasket or packing ring I2, which has a width substantially equal to that of the said flat top of the bottle neck, and when the shell I is placed within the bottle neck, the flange 3 will rest upon the gasket I2, the flange, as will be noted, having'an outside diameter less than that and constituting av of the top of the bottle, and less than that of the gasket. A cover cap is provided and rests upon the ange 3 of the shell I. This cover is preferably of relatively soft metal and consists of a fiat thin top disc having an upwardly extending stem 1 exteriorly threaded to receive a terminal sealing cap 8 internally threaded at 9 and provided with a gasket III, ,to prevent undesirable egress of the liquid contents of the bottle.

The stem I is provided with a dispensing orifice I and bevelled seat l for gasket I0.

Integral with the top of the cover 6 is a depending annular fiange 6 having relatively thin walls and constituting a retaining band, the function of which is to secure the cover cap t on the bottle neck by a spinning operation in a well known manner. Radially disposed and projecting downwardly from the lower face of the cover 8 and integral therewith, arespaced lugs II which provide dispensing 'clearance between this face and the. guard-and-guide I 6 when the bottle is inverted and the said guard-and-guide rests upon these lugs. 'Ihe latter also provide convenient means for frictionally securing the cover to the shellI as they are purposely made to include an outer diameter slightly greater than the diameter across the inner walls of the shell, and, in the final assembly, are pressed into the shell.

The above descriptiony is intended to clearly explain the assembled relation of the aforesaid parts to the bottle, but in actual practice it will be understood that the protective stopper unit is assembled independently, as shown in Fig. '2, so that it can be shipped to the user, who merely has to place it in position on the bottle top after the liquid preparation has been introduced, following which procedure the bottle and loosely applied stopper is placed in a spinninglmachine and the flange 6 is snugly spun over the shoulder C. The advantages of an assembled unit are manifest and need no further comment.

Referring more particularly to the valve-train,

.the valve I4 is preferably disc-shaped and functions to open and close the passageway 5 through the seat d. 'Ihe weight I5 is also loosely mounted in the compartment `I and, when 'the bottle is upright, rests by gravity upon the valve I4, the latter being guided in its movement by the ribs 2 which also form passageways therebetween for the passage of liquid. The weight I5 is preferably cylindrical in form adjacent rits base, as indicated at I5', and is provided with a frusto-conical portion I5". The contiguous faces of the weight I5 and the float-valve I4 are preferably flat, so that they will adhere to each other under air pressure when wet and unsubmerged and brought into contact with each other; and especially the surface contact area between weight and valve should be decidedly greater than the surface contact area between valve and seat, sothat when the parts are wet and unsubmerged the Weight in moving away from the seat under action of gravity will carry with it thev valve or float under forces sufficient to overcome any tendency of the valve to adhere to the seat. The illustrated construction of the valve seat aids materially in determining this ratio of areas of contact. Since the valve seat is formed in a raised platform spaced from the wall ofthe valve casing, it will be evident that accurate predeterminationof the area of the valve seat regardless of the size of the opening 5 canbe made, as well as` the desired diameter differential between the valve disk and the circle of the guide ribs. Thus, the size of the opening 5 can be varied as conditions demand, and at the same time, a valve seat surroundingthis opening can be provided of such areathat the diski will not adhere to the seat sufllciently to preventthe weight from pulling the disk away from the seat, when the bottle is held in such position, that the weight will normally move away from the seat. Furthermore, by reason of the gutter that separates the valve seat from the side walls, the flow of air and liquid respectively into and out of opening 5 improved, possibly because, among other things, the flow is stream-lined.

Within the shell i above the weight is shown a combined guard and guide I6. This guard and guide member It is cylindrical in external form and is provided with a frusta-conical recess in the -lower face thereof, corresponding In contour to the portion I 5" of the weight I5, whereby the latter may be received within and be contained by the former, a series of grooves Il being provided on the wall of the recess to prevent airpressure adherence between weight and guard when wet.

I have also shown the guard and guide I6 with a recess on its upper face to provide an annular wall I9 to constitute what may be termed a baffling device to prevent the introduction of a wire or tool through the dispensing orifice l' and downl into the shell I between the ribs 2 for v. the purpose of possibly engaging the weight I5 or the valve lli and holding the latter off its seat, and in this manner permitting the introduction from above of liquid into the bottle. The annular wall I@ will intercept the wire or the like and prevent the further introduction thereof. The cavity defined by the wall also provides an additional clearance area for the free egress of liquid. I.

To prevent any possibility of the weight becoming wedged within the guard and guide I6, the latter is provided with an internal projec-= tion I, preferably /centrally disposed, which is adapted to contact with the top of the weight before the latter can come into any such wedg' ing engagement between the walls of the frustoconical recess in the guard and guide and the adjacent surface of the portion I5" of the weight.

Furthermore, if an attempt be made to drill into 'having then slid down into a valve closing position. The grooves Il prevent any other tendeny of these two elements to stick together by preventing ary suction that might otherwise be present and sufcient to overcome the forces of' gravity acting upon the weight to close the valve when desired.

. To make preliminary assembly of the device independently of the bottle, the guard and guide I6 is `first placed upon a table in an inverted position.A The weight I5 is then applied with the portion I5" within the corresponding recess of said guard and guide. Then the valve Il is placed upon the weight following which valve-train assembly, the shell I is positioned to enclose these parts, the sloping or bevelled portion 2 of the ribs 2 serving to facilitate the entry of the valvetrain parts into the shell. These parts may then with the non-refillable elements.

.paste tube and 4 be slid off the table and turned right side up. For subsequent final assembly atool may be provided as a holder which will correspond to a bottle top with central opening or, if desired, one of the actual bottles might be used, and the shell with the contained valve-train may then be positioned as in Fig. l, the gasket I2 being first placed as shown so that the shell may slip through it. The cover 6, with its sealing cap 8 screwed on, is then applied and the ribs II pressed into tight engagement with the inner walls of the shell. During this operation the flange' slides over the peripheral edge of the gasket I2 the latter being of such outside and inside diameter that it will fricticnally engage the inner wall of the flange 6' arid press against the shell I which it surrounds, thus contributing toward the firm assembly of the unit until such time as it may be finally spun in place on` a bottle to be protected thereby.

In Figs. 6, 7 and 8 a modified form of the invention is shown in which a sub-unit is first assembled as in Fig. 8 and in which a valve compartment cover 32, preferably of porcelain, is secured to the top of the compartment 29 which latter is provided with an upstanding flange 33 having a shoulder 3| formed therein upon which rests coverv32, the flange 30 closely surrounding same and terminating at a point ush'with the top of said cover. Diametrically-opposite indentations 33 in the cover serve to secure same tothe valve compartment shell 29, the flangev30 being pressed into said indentations as shown by any suitable means. The cover 32 is provided with lugs 32 which extend within the shell 29 to limit the outward movement of the valve-train,

parts, similar to those shown in Fig. l, to afford clearance when the contents of the bottle is being dispensed.

When in position on the bottle the shell 29 will extend within the bore of the neck and :the shoulder 3I will rest upon the gasket I2. A cover cap 25 is then applied as shown in Fig. 6 and is pro- -vided with a recess 26 `to receive'the cover 32, the shoulder 3I being substantially flush with the bottom surface of the cap 25 and the top surface of the cover 32 being relievedA at 34 for better seating against the inner lower surface of the cap 25 as shown. l

The cap 25 has an upwardly extending stem 21, a dispensing orifice 21' and a bevelled top gasket seat 21 as in Fig. 1. A metal ferrule 28 centrally apertured for the passage therethrough of the stexn`21 is adapted to fit snugly over the cap 25 and has a depending annular flange 28' which functions in a manner similar to that of the flange 6 of Fig. l. The cover 32 is intended to provide additional protection in this instance against any drilling operation in an attempt to defeat the purpose of the invention.

In Figs. 9 and 10 Va further modified form of ytheinvention is shown which is considered to be Va preferred form inasmuch as its construction includes in greatest simplicity what may be termed a non-replaceable cover cap associated The same valve-train compartment is shown consisting of the shell I with the weight, valve, and guard and guide elements contained therein but a cover cap 4'0 is provided in which the integral flange '5' of Fig. l has been omitted. This cover cap 40 is made of a relatively soft metal such as tin and is similar to the top of an ordinary tooth manufactured in a like manner. It is provided with lugs 42 similar to the lugs II thereof that is between skirt 43' In lieu of thev flange 6 a separate ferrule 43 is provided, having a portion overlying and conforming to the shape of the top of the cover 40 around the stem 4I, and with a depending annular skirt 43, made of a relativelyhard although ductile metal such as Monel metal, preferably of a grade of temper known in the trade as dead soft. This should not however be taken to imply that the ferrule is so soft that its removal could be as easily effected as if it was made of tin or the like, as it is extremely hard when compared to that metal or even aluminum which have heretofore been used to attach stoppers on the exterior of bottle necks, as in my aforesaid patent. When the annular skirt 43' of the ferrule 43 is spunvover the 4shoulder C of the bottle neck such spinning operation renders the portion engaged by the spinning rollers even harder and morebrittle so that there will be great difliculty in removing the ferrule at all, or to escape breaking the bottle neck.

However, in the event that such removal should be accomplished, the ferrule must of necessity be ruptured and thus become badly mutilated, rendering it totally unfit for reuse, such mutilation persisting even though another` spinning machine operation should be resorted to in an effort to replace the stopper after refilling the bottle with fraudulent intent as set forth;

The assembly of this unit varies somewhat from that described for Fig. 1. In this instance the cover cap 43 is applied to theshell I with the sealing cap 8 omitted, the lugs 42 being firmly pressed into the said shell. The ferrule is next slipped over the stem 4I which is guided through the hole 44 more easily by the centering action of the bevelled top of the stem, until it rests upon cover 40. The gasket I2 is frictionally engaged and shell I in the same manner as before, and then the sealing cap 8 is screwed onto the stem, a slight clearance being provided between the base of the cap 8 and the top surface soA of the ferrule to ensure proper sealing action of having gaskets and threadedv ferrule 43, in which instance such separately assembled sub-unit would be the equivalent lof the integral cover cap shown at 6 in Fig. 1, as far as further assembly operations are concerned, and could be finally applied during the assembly operation just as in the case of the Fig. l construction. f l

In Fig. 1l means are provided to protect the lower edge of the skirt 43' of the ferrule 43 so as to materially add to the difficulty of any attempt to pry neck by inserting a tool between such lower edge and the adjacent outer wall of the bottle neck, as it will be obvious that in order to loosen the skirt 43' it is first necessary to set up an effective leverage in the aforesaid manner;

Therefore an annular depression D is provided] in the bottle neck immediately beneath the the skirt away from the bottle` shoulder C to form a narrow groove'adapted to 75 receive the lower edge of the skirt 43 when the latter is spun over the shoulder C, such spinning operation causing the metalto flow in a well known manner, whereupon the said lower edge will lie snugly within said groove. Should a tool be insertedin the groove in an attempt to dislodge the aforesaid lower edge of the skirt any leverage acting upon the edge of the groove will set up a component in a direction parallel -with the plane of that portion of the skirt beneath the shoulder C instead of transversely thereof and without any tendency to move the, skirt in a direction away from the bottle neck.

The groove will also lessen the thickness of. the glass at this point and a relatively weakened `zone will exist with a tendency towards breakage as a result of such removal efforts.

By cover any element is intended that could be employed to retain the valve-train within its compartment before it is positioned within the bottle neck. -The .cover may be of porcelain Vor of metal, and the means for securing the assembled unit to the bottle may be an integral part of said cover, or a separate ferrule might be employed.

The device shown and described herein meets the demand of the market for an inside or semi-inside tment of small proportions for use on'bottles containing hair tonies, table sauces, etc.

In use the bottle is rst lled with the desired liquid. One of the described tments is then positioned on the neck of the bottle and securely spun thereon. When it is desired to dispense a portion or all of the bottle contents, the sealing cap 8 'is removed and the bottle is inverted and shaken. The valve I4 is'thus momentarily unseated, and the contiguous faces of the valve and weight become wet if not already so as the result of shipping or handling of the bottle. Before any appreciable degree of partial vacuum can be established in the bottle, as the result of initial pouring the now wet valve and weighty adhere together, and as the liquidl leaves the valve compartment, -through the terminal stem orifice, as rapidly as it enters the same through the opening in the valve seat, the air pressure will maintain adherence between these parts and theK valve will thus become a weighted valve under these conditions and will pulsate with the weight during such shaking ofthe bottle, liquid entering and leaving the said compartment during such pulsations and being discharged .through -said stem orifice as a sprinkle, the clearance area being sufficient. to permit the free entrance of air around said valve and into the bottle to replace the liquid drawn therefrom:

If the bottle is partly emptied and then returned to an upright position, the weight I5 will fall by gravity upon the valve I4 and cause the latter to rest upon the seat 4 to close the opening into the bottle. If the bottle is placed upon its side the same result will take place because of the cooperating sloping sides of the weight I 5 and the guard and guide I6, as the weight will always slide to a lowermost position and in such position will push the Valve I4 against the seat 4 and effectually close the mouth of the bottle. If the bottle is completely emptied, and while inverted its mouth is submerged ina body of liquid, the vguard and guide I6, and the weight I5 will both drop away from the seat 4, both being heavier than the entering liquid; but as the compartment within the shell I lls, any air-pressure adherence between weight and valve will be ,broken by immersion and the valve will be floated and seated against the seat 4 to close the opening 5 therethrough before any liquid can enter the bottle. And the greater the pressure of the entering liquid the tighter will be the closure.

The entire contents of the bottle can be dispensed, the slight clearance between the shell and the inner walls of the bottle neck being insumcient to trap any appreciable amount of liquid therein.

It is importantthat the various passageways, such as that between the valve face, when the valve is in an open position, and the surface of the valve seat; and between the ribs 2 and the inner walls of the shell'or valve compartment and guard I6; and between the ribs II and the inner wall of the cover 6 and top of guard I6; should be of a suitable area, relatively, to permit the liquid contents of the bottle entering the valve compartment, tov flow. freely through it and through the final oricewithout any building up of a fluid level in the said compartment, to thus prevent the valve and weight from becoming submerged, as air then would be sufficiently excluded from the valve compartment to cause the airpressure adhesion between valve and weight to be broken. The valve would then lose its temporarily weighted characteristics and in consequence would float,`now upwardly, against the seat and close the passageway therethrough, just as when attempts are made to refill in this position. Should the bottle be now shaken in' an effort to dislodge the valve there would' be danger that the latter would`on1y leave the seat vlong enough to permit a slight discharge therethrough, and the entering air bubble to replace same would carry the light yvalve back to the `seat again and a slight Vacuum within the bottle would then exist. Repeated efforts would simply increase the vacuum and more tightly lock the valve against its seat.

Provision is made to prevent such backing up of the fluid in the valve compartment, the aforesaid passage areas beinggreater in cross section in a direction away from the valve seat and the adhesion between valve and weight being thus maintained for the effective weighting of the valve during the dispensing operation to prevent the valve from being carried to the seat by entering air while the bottle is breathing to replace withdrawn fluid.

It is obvious that various modifications may be employed to secure substantially the same results without departing from the spirit of the invention and therefore I do not wish to be understood as limiting myself to the exact form and constructionshown. Accordingly the foregoing description is merely illustrative.

I claim:

1 An independently assembled stopper unit for attachment to a bottle to render the same nonreflllable, comprising a casing adapted to extend within the neck of said bottle to form a valve compartment and having a valve seat with an opening therethrough at the bottom of said casing, a valve device in said compartment, spacingmeans arranged circumferentially about said valve device effective between same and the inner walls of said valve compartment to provide longitudinal passageways for the egress of liquid, an oriced cover for said casing adapted to be se- 'cured thereto independently of said bottle, a part of said casing being arranged to extend trarsfversely outwardly from the .top thereof with 6 the top surface of. same contiguous the bottom surface of said cover and with an included diameter greater than the boreiin the neck of said bottle but substantially less than that of the cover to provide means for supporting the casing on the top of the bottle, and a gasket of greater diameter than said extending part of the casing adapted when the stopper unit is secured to the bottle with the gasket under compression, to engage the bottom surface of both the cover and said extending part of the casing.

2. In a non-rellable bottle, a valve casing adapted to extend Within the neck of said bottle to provide a valve compartment, and having one end open, and a valve seat and opening therethrough at the other end, an outwardly extending annular flange forming a part of said casing at the top or open end of same of greater diameter than the bore in the neck of said bottle, a valve device within said compartment, a cover for said casing, and a gasket,` both of greater diameter than said flange, said gasket being disposed directly beneath said iiange and above the top of said bottle neck, whereby it will contact effectively with the bottom surface of the cover and also that of the ange to establish an airtight joint between both of the aforesaid parts and the bottle top when the casing and the cover are secured to the bottle with the gasket under compression.`

3. An independently assembled stopper unit for attachment to a bottle to render the same nonreiillable, comprising a casing having one end open, and a valve seat and opening therethrough at the other end, said casing being adapted to eX- tend within the neck of said bottle toV provide a valve compartment, a part of said casing extending transversely outwardly from the open end thereof with a diameter greater than the bore in the neck of said bottle to provide means for supporting said casing on the top of said bottle, a valve device within said compartment, an orificed cover for said casing of greater diameter than that .of said casing supporting means, and having a portion extending within the open' end of said casing adapted to engage the inner wall thereof to effectively secure said casing to said cover and thereby retain the valve device in said compartment, and a gasket surrounding the casling beneath said casing supporting means confronting the bottom surface of both the cover and of said casing supporting means.

4. An independently assembled stopper unit for application to a bottle to render the same non-rellable, comprising a casing adapted to extend within the neck of said bottle to form a valve compartment, a cover for said casing, and a gasket surrounding the casing, a valve device in said compartment, and spacing-means between said cover and said valve device, consisting of a plurality of projections extending from the lower surface of said cover within said compartment, and arranged to provide transverse passageways therebetween, and alsoto so frictionally engage the inner walls of said casing as to thereby secure said cover in assembled relation to said casing.

5. An independently assembled stopper unit for application -to a bottle to-render-the same non-reflllable, comprising a casing adapted to extend within the neck of said bottle to form a valve compartment, a cover for said casing, and a gasket surrounding the casing, a Valve device 5 vloose in said compartment, and means for limiting the movement of said valve device in a direction toward said cover and spacing same there- .from for the egress of liquidwhen said unit i5 to provide a 6; In an independently assembled stopper unit to a bottle to render the same casing adapted to extend within for application non-rellable, l a

4the neck of said bottle to form a valve compartment, a cover for said casing, and a gasket surrounding the casing, a valve device in said compartment, and spacing-means between said cover and said valve device, consisting of a plurality of lugs projecting from the lower surface of said cover within said valve compartment, and engaging the inner wall of said casing withv a pressed t to effectively secure said 'cover in assembled relation to said casing.

7. An independently assembled stopper unitl for application to a bottle to render the same nonrellable, comprising a casing adapted to extend within the bore of the neck of said bottle to provide a valve compartment, valve-means loose in said compartment including a separate weight, and a float, a flange at the top of said casing of greater diameter than the bore of said bottle neck, a gasket beneath said flange, a cover for said casing of greater diameter than said flange, and having av stem projecting therefrom orifced passageway from said casing for the egress of liquid, a portion of said cover extending within said casing and effective to secure same to the cover, a ferrule contiguously overlying said cover and extending below .same to provide an annular portion surrounding said casing and spaced circumferentially therefrom adapted to be spun over a shoulder adjacent the top of said bottle, and having a central opening in that portion overlying said cover for the introduction therethrough of said stem, and a terminal closure for said stem adapted when applied thereto to retain said ferrule in assembled relation to said cover. i

8. A preliminarily assembled tment of the kind described, comprising a tubular shell for insertion into the mouth of a bottle, having an open end with a continuous circular flange outturned from its open end, an apertured cover engaged over the open end of the shell, a ferrule having an apertured part overlying the cover and a depending'skirt portion surrounding and spaced from the shell wall, and a closure for the cover ferrule which overlies the cover to hold the same in assembled relation with the cover. l f

9. A preliminarily assembled viitment of the kind described, comprising a tubular shell for insertion into the mouth of a bottle, having an open end with a continuous circular flange out-l turned from its open end, an apertured cover engaged over the open end of the shell, a ferrule having an apertured part overlying the cover and adepending skirt portion surrounding and spaced from the shell wall, and a closure for the cover aperture having a part engaging that part of the ferrule which overlies the cover to hold the same in assembled relation with the cover, and a gasket between and having its edges in frictional engagementwith the side wall of the shell and with the skirt portion, and having lone'sealing face confronting a face of theange and the bottom 'nsA bottle, the shell having an open end surrounded by a suspension flange extending laterally therefrom and the shell having its lower end inwardly and upwardly Aturned and apertured to provide (a) a central aperture (b) an annular gutter interiorly of the shell whose inner wall is curved and extends inwardly and toward the axis of theshell (c), an annular at-ring-like area. constituting an extension of the inner gutter wall in a plane perpendicular to the shell axis and constituting a valve seat around said central aperture.

11. In a stopper for attachment to a bottle to render the same substantially 'non-rellable, a

' valve casing for said stopper comprising a genofthe shell is of substantially true cylindricalform.

` 12. In a stopper for attachment toa bottle to render the same substantially non-refillable, a valve casing for said stopper comprising a generally cylindriform shell extending down into-the bottle, said shell having an open upper end surrounded by a suspension flange extending laterally therefrom and the shell having the bottom thereof inturned to form a valve seat surrounding an aperture, guide ribs formed longitudinally in the shell wall and terminating definitely short of the upper end of the shell whereby the upper portion of 'the shell is of substantially true cylindrical form, and an oriflc'ed cover member for said stopper, said cover member being provided with depending lugs of an included diameter sufficiently greater than the internaldiameter of the upper part of the shell so that said lugs engage the inner wall of the upper part of the shell with a pressed fit to hold the valve casing to said dcover member. f

13. In a. `stopper for attachment to a bottle to render the same non-reflllable, a valve casing for said stopper comprising a generally cylindriform shell extending down into the' bottle, said shell having an open end surrounded by a. suspension flange extending laterally therefrom, said flange being of an included diameter less than the external diameter of the top'of the bottle neck, valve mechanism in said shell, anorificed cover member shaped to overlie the top of said bottle neck, and a sealing gasket having the surfaces thereof contacting with the top of the bottle neck, with a surface of said flange and with the bottom of said cover member whereby when the stopper'is secured to the bottle with the gasket under compression, a seal is obtained between the bottle," the shell, and the cover member.

` 14. A stopper for attachment to a bottle to render the same substantially non-rellable comprising a valve casing made up of a generally cylindriform shell extending down into the bottle, said shell having an open end surrounded by a suspension flange extending laterally therefrom,

'and said shell having the bottom thereof in- 'turned to form a valve seat surrounding an aperture, valve mechanism Yin said shell, and an orificed cover member for said stopper, said cover member being provided with depending lugs of an included diameter sufficiently greater than the internal diameter of the upper part of the shell so that said lugs engage the inner wall of the upper part of the shell with a pressed fit to hold the valve casing to said cover member.

15. A stopper for attachment to a bottle to 4 and an oriflced cover member for said stopper,I

said members being provided with cooperating parts engaging each other with a pressed fit to hold the said members together.

EDGE-'WORTH GREENE. 

